Gas adsorption articles or elements are used in many industries to remove airborne contaminants to protect people, the environment, and often, a critical manufacturing process or the products that are manufactured by the process. A specific example of an application for gas adsorption articles is the semiconductor industry where products are manufactured in an ultra-clean environment, commonly known in the industry as a “clean room”. Gas adsorption articles are also used in many non-industrial applications. For example, gas adsorption articles are often present in air movement systems in both commercial and residential buildings, for providing the inhabitants with cleaner breathing air.
Common airborne contaminants include basic contaminants such as ammonia, organic amines, and N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, acidic contaminants such as hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen chloride, or sulfur dioxide, and general organic material contaminants, often referred to as VOCs (volatile organic compounds), such as reactive monomer or unreactive solvent. Reactive and unreactive silicon containing materials, such as silanes, siloxanes and silanols, can be particularly detrimental contaminants for some applications. Many toxic industrial chemicals and chemical warfare agents should be removed for some use applications, and must be removed from breathing air.
What is needed is a contaminant removal system that can effectively remove contaminants such as acids, bases, or other organic materials from a fluid stream.